Making the Case for Companies Offering Free Guest Wi-Fi

Free Wi-Fi is fast becoming a “commodity,” with the current populace being more tech-savvy by the day. Companies have also caught on, with a good number now offering free Wi-Fi connection to guests when the latter enters their premises. Tailwind Voice and Data, among other like-minded service providers, are in business because of this boom.

Statistical Proof

The company DeviceScape, in partnership with iGR, commissioned a survey of 400 small enterprises with brick-and-mortar stores. According to the survey, it was revealed that free guest Wi-Fi increased foot traffic, the time customers spend within the premises, and the amount of money that people spend.

In actual stats, the aforementioned findings translate as this: almost 62 percent of the businesses surveyed businesses say that after introducing Wi-Fi, they noticed that customers spent more time within their company premises. Moving on to the patrons themselves, about half of the surveyed spent more money during their stay. In contrast, a minuscule number of business owners thought the opposite.

Should Startups Be in the Loop?

Several startup entrepreneurs have specific concerns with offering free guest Wi-Fi. Among those is the cost involved. They often think that the venture will be expensive and difficult to manage, when it’s in fact not. All business owners need to do is extend whatever web connection they have into a dedicated Wi-Fi hotspot. Those with a satellite internet service have it much better, too: they can simply offer free Wi-Fi without worrying about reliability and speed issues.

Free Wi-Fi Enables Feedback Gathering

Customer feedback is critical for any company’s further improvement — bar none. This rings true most especially for startups. It’s not possible for new businesses to deliver according to the customers’ whims if they’re not aware of said “requirements.” In turn, the company can’t perform as well as it should. Offering free Wi-Fi provides a way out of the aforementioned issue. Companies can ask their guests to fill out a feedback form in exchange for free Wi-Fi, and all the needed feedback information will be there.

Free Wi-Fi = Free Promotion

If you take a closer look, it can be seen that free guest Wi-Fi also helps spread word about the business. Using the company name as the Wi-Fi network’s public name is a good promotional practice. While not everyone entering the shop will necessarily buy anything outright, them spending a bit of time using the free Wi-Fi may entice them to return and bring friends along with them.